CHVRCHES cover Janelle Monae's "Tightrope"

CHVRCHES' Lauren Mayberry penned a widely shared piece on misogyny last year so it makes sense that her band would be invited to perform at Billboard's Women In Music event in New York. What makes a little less sense is their cover of fellow girl power activist and funk android Janelle Monae's anthem "Tightrope." The CHVRCHES' version of the track slows the hyper-kinetic shoulder-brushing jam to a synthy crawl and never expands much on that concept.

I was really hoping for a moment where they did the idea justice: hitme with a sonic wall, show off a synth riff, something. All this version did was rob "Tightrope" of its urgency without replacing it with anything.

That being said, CHVRCHES' genuinely good debut album is no longer free but it is out now and worth the money.